Despite Md. ruling, warrant still needed for DNA swab here

DOVER — Until there's a statute on the books in the Granite State, a search warrant will be required to obtain a DNA swab from someone arrested in New Hampshire.

In a recent decision by the U.S. Supreme Court, it was determined obtaining a DNA swab from a man who had been arrested was not an “unreasonable search” and therefore did not require a search warrant, as is that case in New Hampshire.

In regard to the Maryland-based case, the Supreme Court recently ruled criminal suspects can be subjected to a police DNA test following their arrest and before trial and conviction.

“The case involves a Maryland man convicted of a 2003 rape in Wicomico County in the state's Eastern Shore region,” according to a report by CNN, which goes on to state: “Alonzo King Jr. had been arrested four years ago on an unrelated assault charge, and a biological sample was automatically obtained at that time. That sample was linked to the earlier sexual assault.”

The high court ultimately concluded that such a search is legitimate and not considered unreasonable in some cases, such as with what is considered a “serious felony.”

That decision calls into question the Fourth Amendment right of every U.S. citizen, where it is promised that the “right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures.”

Currently there are 26 states that allow for this procedure to take place following a felony arrest.

According to Strafford County Attorney Tom Velardi, there are currently no Police Departments within this 13 community county that conduct a DNA swab as part of a routine booking procedure. Currently there are no evidence collection statutes in the state.

Furthermore, he said if someone is arrested and found not guilty, that evidence is destroyed.

He said when officials are trying to get incriminating evidence against someone, a search warrant is normally part of that procedure.

And even if a decision passed at a federal level, it would not necessarily mean police could take a DNA swab without a search warrant in New Hampshire.

“In New Hampshire one of the things we enjoy is a constitution with greater protections,” he said.